Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf leader Asad Qaiser sent to Adiala Jail in graft case

Islamabad [Pakistan]: The judicial magistrate on Saturday sent Pakistan’s former National Assembly Speaker and senior Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Asad Qaiser to Adiala Jail, Pakistan-based Geo News reported.

On Friday, Asad Qaiser was taken into custody from his home in Islamabad by police and the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) over alleged corruption in procurement related to Swabi’s Gajju Khan Medical College.

The first information report (FIR) lodged on the complaint of former ACE investigation officer Hidayat Shah, accuses Qasier and four health department officials of causing a loss of Pakistani Rupees (PKR) 16.456 million to the Treasury by “stealing” the equipment and purchasing substandard furniture.

The Islamabad police on Saturday presented Qaiser before a judicial magistrate in Islamabad, requesting the PTI leader’s remand in the graft case, according to Geo News report.

Meanwhile, Asad Qaiser’s legal team, comprising Shoaib Shaheen, Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, requested the court “discharge” the PTI leader.

“[We] are filing an application for Asad Qaiser’s protective bail,” Shaheen told the judicial magistrate, according to Geo News report.

The lawyer questioned why the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa police did not apprehend Qaiser from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, as he frequently visits the province.

The lawyer asked, “Who gave Islamabad police the authority to arrest Qasier?” Shaheen said, “The KP police wrote to the Islamabad police to arrest Qasier,” adding, “If KP anti-corruption police had sought federal capital police’s assistance [then] it would’ve been a different matter.”

Gohar Ali Khan criticised the manner in which Qaiser was taken into custody. Khan said, “There’s a way [and procedure] to make an arrest.” He even asked whether the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa police had a warrant to arrest the PTI leader.

Meanwhile, the judge said that a judicial magistrate court could not approve the PTI leader’s bail. The court then ordered the authorities to shift Asad Qaiser to Adiala jail where he is to be kept in judicial lockup till ACE transfers him to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Notably, PTI’s top leadership, including its chairman and vice chairman Imran Khan and Shah Mahmood Qureshi, continue to remain in prison in the same facility for their jail trial in the cypher case, Geo News reported.

PTI condemned his arrest and expressed concerns regarding the transparency of the elections, which are due to be held on February 8, 2024.

PTI spokesperson said, “Asad Qaiser’s arrest is a question mark on the role of the election commission in staging fair polls. The series of leaders’ arrests is a conspiracy to keep PTI out of the election race.”